Give it Some Looove

Loooooove that note!

The main point from last night for all the songs we have covered is that we need to fall in love with the long notes at the end of phrases and sing them right to the end of the bar with the same energy and intensity. Don’t let the note fade away. Give it some love.

You have to love falling in love with the long note.

When talking of giving in With or Without You, we need to emphasise ‘give’ in ‘Give yourself away.’ 

A strong ‘G’ and ‘V’ with a slight ‘ee’ sound, e.g. ‘GeeVe yourself a way. Sing ‘give’ with intensity right to the end of the phrase and drive through the note.

Cloudbusting is getting there.  It is a very sectional song, so take the time to get the feel of each section and know what to expect.

‘But every time it rains’ is a very muscular and quick burst of lyrics with long notes that need to be sung, with love, to the end. The ‘Oohs’ under this need to be built up in volume.

The ‘Oohs’ at the end are in pairs.  The first pair is shorter than the second pair, but there is no slowing down, even at the last pair of ‘Oohs’

Every Time We Say Goodbye has a beautiful melody, but its beauty comes from the Altos, who only have two notes to sing. They are the lynchpin for the harmonies, so give them some love and make them your melody.

The part ‘major to minor’ does slow down, so watch Eamonn for the timing.

There are long phrases in this song, so you sing them to the end and do not breathe until you get there!

Only You, a new song for some. Please ensure you have printed out the latest version to minimise page turns. (Also, Side by Side has an updated version)

It is a song by English synth-pop duo Yazoo. Vince Clarke, a member of Depeche Mode at the time, wrote it, but he recorded it in 1982 after he formed Yazoo with Alison Moyet. It was released as Yazoo's first single on 15 March 1982 in the United Kingdom, taken from their first album.

The Flying Pickets recorded an a cappella cover of Only You, which was the Christmas number one in the UK in December 1983 and reached number 17 in Canada in April 1984.

Vince Clarke had written Only You as a sentimental ballad and wanted to find a vocalist who could sing with emotion. Singer Alison Moyet placed an ad in Melody Maker looking for a new band, and Vince Clarke had heard Alison Moyet perform with a few other bands in the pub circuit, and felt she was a good fit for the song. He responded to the ad and asked Alison if she wanted to sing for a demo. She was initially reluctant, as she never aspired to perform pop songs, and noted, "A part of me was thinking I'll never hear the end of it if I go and sing with this pretty boy". She eventually agreed, saying she needed the money and could not make a demo alone. The song may have initially been about Vince Clarke's uneasy relationship with Depeche Mode, but Alison Moyet turned the lyrics into the story of a person "looking through a scrapbook of photo-like memories”

The Basses and Tenors are singing together, and Eamonn’s arrangement gives us lots of "ba bas" and "ba das," sung by the different voice parts at different times, creating an amazing effect. 

Make the Ba bas bouncy with emphasis on the first ‘Ba’ and slightly softer second ‘ba’ or ‘da’

Sops, keep ‘Only you’ clean and precise. ‘Gave’ is a long note, so remember to give it some love!

Keep up the practice, the clock is ticking.

The clock is ticking tick, tick, tock.

Look Out for Specs!

Specs, I see no Specs?

It's only two months until our Summer Concert, so we have a lot of work ahead of us.  We have all the material that Elliot arranged and taught us, some of which Eamonn has not heard us sing yet, as well as Eamonn’s four new songs and some old ones he will be bringing back (although these will be new songs for a lot of us who haven’t sung them before)

We went through Without or Without You this time to the end of the song.

It is critical to know when to come in for the Altos and Sops, so listen for a little ripple in the base at the end of the bar, and that is your entrance.

Altos; ‘See the stone set in your eyes…’ and Sops & Altos: ‘Sleight of hand and twist of fate…’

‘Through the storm ….’ The Tenors and Basses are together until a split ‘..and I’m waiting for you’ so don’t be tempted to carry on singing the same tune together.

In the section ‘and you give yourself away…..’, the ‘gives’ are all off the beat and need to have a little push on the sound, apart from the last ‘give’ (which has a pair of specs over it ), which is on the beat.

Give ‘give’ some looooooove.

Listen to each other even though you are singing different notes. Primarily through the section with a call and response: ‘My hands are tied, my body bruised’

Tenors, think of ‘My body bruised, you got me with’ as one long phrase.

DO NOT BREATHE: ‘Nothing to win and nothing left to lose’ It is a long phrase, so drive through it to the end to create endless tension.

Ultimately, the pattern of notes remains the same; they begin as ‘Aahs’, but the last pair is ‘Oohs’, which provides a softer ending. Sop 1s, start your ‘Aahs’ a little louder and confidently.

Sop2s and Basses, the phrases you sing over the Aahs and Oohs seem quick by comparison, but keep the momentum going

Every Time We Say Goodbye is a song we have previously sung, although this is an updated arrangement, so ensure you have the 2025 version.

This is a popular jazz song with lyrics and music by Cole Porter, published in 1944.

The lyrics celebrate how happy the singer is in the company of the beloved, but suffer equally whenever the two separate. Describing it by analogy as a musical "change from major to minor", Porter begins with an A♭ major chord and ends with an A♭minor chord, matching the mood of the music to the words.

Sopranos 1's and Basses are together.  Love the long notes in this, especially on ‘time’ and ‘bye’

Basses watch out for the specs in your music  showing where you are not on The Tune, but have your own tune to harmonise; ‘Why the gods above me…’

Tenors you are on and off the tune, so just learn it as Your Tune.

‘...must be in the know’  , the ‘muuuuust’ is a long vowel sound.

Any Dream Will Do was sung through. Eamonn will go through this again.

Next week we will go through Cloudbusting, With or Without You. 

Look out for anything new in Dropbox and keep practising EVERYTHING. 

Let the hard work begin!

And looking towards the future, The Sound of Silence. A real favourite.

Keep it Fresh

Sea Fog Rollin'

We recapped Sea Fog, which needed a minor reconstructive surgery!

It is important to have the right rhythm so the words fit the notes.

Do not breathe after ‘wings’ or ‘stone’

This song has long phases, so keep them going to the end, especially after ‘tomorrow’

 It is important to keep this one and all the songs we have previously done fresh in our minds, as we won’t have time to go through them all each week. Eamonn can then tweak them as he perfects them for performance.

Cloudbusting, a very challenging song, was next. Although it has a tick-tock rhythm, it is not melodic, and to make it interesting, it needs a sense of drama.

You have permission to breathe after dream, but only a quick, short breath!

Make your ‘YO, Yo’ sound like something important and top secret.

Enjoy the long notes; ‘rain’, ‘head’, ‘out’ and ‘Ooh’

Altos & Basses ensure you sing the three notes on ‘when’

There is a spacious sound to the music under ‘On top of the world’, but it doesn’t slow down (no matter how tempted you may be!)

‘Government’ is a very long note which crescendos, so sing it right through to the end, getting louder with a clear ‘t’ sound.

Sops, smile when you ‘Ooh’ to keep it bright.

With or Without You is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is on their album, The Joshua Tree, and was released as their lead single on 16 March 1987. The song was the group's most successful single at the time.

Ostensibly a song about troubled love, the track's lyrics were inspired by Bono's conflicting feelings about his life as a musician and a domestic man. While writing the lyrics, he realised that neither facet of his life defined him, but rather the tension between the two did. He explained that the final lyric is about torment and how repressing desires only strengthens them.

The rhythm is syncopated with only four chords, so you should be able to find the right note, even if it isn’t the right note for your voice part!

There is quite a long gap before singing ‘Sleight of hand…’

No chewing sound when singing ‘without you’ keep a soft ‘t’ sound so it doesn’t sound like ‘withoutchew’

Beware of the difference between singing ‘Oh’, which is more expansive, and an ‘Ooh’, which is softer.

Mark your music score accordingly so you know which one to sing.

Again, this song has long phrases, so sing them to the end without fizzling.

While learning new songs, you may be doing nothing until your part is taught. However, it is important to listen to the other parts, as a lot of the intonation, rhythms, etc., will be the same for you, so you can still learn while listening and patiently waiting.

Please listen to your parts at home.  Practice and be ready for next week.

Remember to keep all songs fresh in your minds.

Micro connections: How to feel more socially connected and happier..

The concept of social ties can be divided into two categories: strong ties and weak ties. Strong social ties are characterised by deep connections with individuals who share significant life experiences, such as family members, close friends, and work colleagues. In contrast, weak ties refer to acquaintances and familiar faces, such as friendly strangers or individuals with whom one may interact briefly. Though often overlooked, weak ties can enhance our happiness and sense of belonging. Influential sociologist Mark Granovetter highlighted the importance of these seemingly minor interactions in his research on employment networks, demonstrating that weak ties can facilitate connections to new networks, people, and information.

Research conducted by Gillian Sandstrom, a senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Essex, indicates that individuals with a larger network of weak ties tend to report higher overall happiness. Her findings suggest that when participants engaged in more casual interactions with weak ties, such as baristas, neighbours, or fellow members of clubs, they experienced increased feelings of happiness and belonging. Additionally, belonging to various clubs, associations, or teams, such as choirs or book clubs, contributes to a stronger sense of security and meaning in life.

Don't Worry! Watch closely, or you may miss the brilliant Robbie Williams.